When My Time Is Up
by Mintelle
Summary: Even with the Dark Lord's return confirmed, Hermione Granger is still determined to spend every spare moment she has preparing for her N.E.W.T exams. So much so that, with McGonagall's advise, that she takes up using her Time-Turner once again to study as much as humanly possible. And things were going well until a certain little Ferret puts a spanner in the works. [ON HIATUS]
1. Chapter 1

**WHEN MY TIME IS UP  
**

* * *

Chapter One

**Summary:** Even with the Dark Lord's return confirmed, Hermione Granger is still determined to spend every spare moment she has preparing for her N.E.W.T exams. So much so that, with McGonagall's advise, that she takes up using her Time Turner once again to study as much as humanly possible. And things were going well until a certain little Ferret puts a spanner in the works. Despite his interruptions, Hermione finds herself growing to enjoy his company, but as time passes, she soon learns of the trouble he's in.

**Author's Note: **This story will follow on from the events of the Order of the Phoenix, starting on the first day of sixth year. The events that follow from there will stray a little from the main plot but will remain true to the timeline and original story.

**Pairings/Ships: **Draco x Hermione | Harry x Ginny | Ron x Lavender | Other Mentions

**Disclaimer: **I do not own, or make a claim, to Harry Potter or any related material. This fiction is purely for entertainment purposes, I do not plan or want to profit from it.

**Warnings: **There will be strong language throughout, followed by moderate to extreme violence, sexual references, strong sexual content, and possible mentions of torture.

**.**

o.O.o

Sunday 1st September 1996

Hogwarts Express, Interior Compartment

**.**

"Don't you see? It was a ceremony, an initiation." Averting her gaze from the book in her lap on Advanced Rune Translations, Hermione couldn't help but feel slightly irritated. Ever since they'd stumbled upon Draco and his Mother going into Borgin and Burkes, examining a rather curious looking item, Harry had been on about it non-stop. From the minute he woke up to the minute he fell asleep, it was Draco this and Draco that. At this point, she was nearing her wit's end. The number of times she'd nearly snapped at him wanted to scream at him to shut up but bit her tongue was far too many to count.

Despite all the vile and cruel things Malfoy had said to her growing up, she still felt guilty about invading his privacy, spying on him no less. Harry, on the other hand, seemed to have no reservations about it at all, in fact, he seemed rather proud of himself. Yes, he and Malfoy had been childhood rivals since their first day at Hogwarts, but that didn't give him the right to go sticking his nose where it didn't belong. Regardless of how he felt about the Slytherin, there were social protocols one must follow, morals that needed to be upheld.

"Stop it, Harry. I know where you're going with this." Hermione sighed, hoping that for once her Best Friend would listen to her. While she didn't want to hurt his feelings, she wanted him to understand that this had gone far enough, that it was beyond a joke now.

"It's happened. He's one of them." Of course, her plea was left unanswered. He was so set in his ways, so convinced he was right from such a vague encounter no less, that he refused to see reason and consider the fact he might be wrong. Whatever the circumstances, Harry was always the first to lay blame on Malfoy when something went wrong, the first to see the worst in him. Even though their blonde haired classmate could be a little prick when he wanted to be, Hermione still believed there was a decent young man hiding behind the facade. But what chance did that side of Draco have of surfacing when his pure-blood Father was circling overhead like a vulture at all times?

She was willing to put good money on it, if Lucius Malfoy was a little more tolerant on Muggles and their blood status, then Malfoy junior definitely would be. Hell, if the son had some time away from his Father to form an opinion of his own, who knows what would happen? Maybe he'd be able to determine on his own that the notion of having pure blood somehow made you better than everyone else was absolutely ridiculous? It was possible.

"One of what?" Ron suddenly asked, having been completely oblivious to their conversation up until that point. He'd been far too occupied with Harry's invisibility cloak, running it through his fingers, chuckling to himself as he watched them disappear and reappear over and over again. Well, it could have been worse she supposed. He could have been stuffing his face full of sweets and talking with his mouth full like he usually did.

"Harry is under the impression Draco Malfoy is now a Death Eater." Hermione explained, turning to face Ron as she closed her book. Something gave her the impression she was not going to get any decent amount of reading done, not while they were having this conversation at the very least. So there was no point in trying, instead she simply bookmarked her page and tucked it off to one side, saving it for a better time when she could give it her full and undivided attention and be able to enjoy it.

"You're barking. What would You-Know-Who want with a sod like Malfoy?" Ron half laughed, half scoffed. If Ron had come to the same conclusion she had, surely that would give Harry a hint as to how far stretched this theory was. Ron wasn't exactly fond of Malfoy either, but unlike Harry, he wasn't using that hatred to condemn his foe without solid evidence. She was hoping Ron's words would hit home, and give Harry a well-needed sign that he was overreacting. After all, Ronald gave very little thought to matters such as this but, with that limited time of contemplation, if he was able to determine Draco Malfoy being a Death Eater made very little sense then surely Harry could catch on too?

But despite her hopes, she could see that determination and stubbornness ripple across her Best Friend's eyes. There was no way he was going to let this go, not by a long shot. This hatred of Draco Malfoy had spent years eating away at him and now he had a 'justified' reason to let it all out. While she knew Harry had good intentions, and his heart was always in the right place, this was just beyond ridiculous.

"Well, then what's he doing in Borgin and Burkes? Browsing for furniture?" Was that so hard to believe? While it may not have been everyone's cup of tea, the shop was well known for its unusual pieces that acquired to a more old fashioned and vintage taste. The Malfoy's lived in a rather lavish Manor for crying out loud, and she'd seen many people from the sacred twenty-eight shopping there before. Pure-blood families tended to take a fancy to those kinds of items. Maybe Draco was having his room redone?

"It's a creepy shop, he's a creepy bloke." Ron shrugged. Once again, he'd been able to determine that Malfoy going furniture shopping seemed more plausible than attending a Death Eater's retreat at Borgin and Burkes. Even in the scenario that Harry was right, if Draco Malfoy was indeed a Death Eater, she saw little to no reason to be concerned by him going into the shop and having a look at some of the items on show. What was he going to do? Bewitch the dining tables to charge the school grounds? There were much more effective means of storming Hogwarts, and they weren't sourced from any kind of furniture.

"Look, his Father is a Death Eater. It only makes sense. Besides, Hermione saw it with her own eyes!" Harry protested, gesturing to Hermione as he argued with Ron. Once again, her point was being made for her. Malfoy was being blamed, targeted even, for his Father's prior actions. His Father's influence and standing effected him in more ways than one. It wasn't just his own beliefs, but his public image as well. Lucius Malfoy was a cruel and sadistic little man, so people assumed that his own flesh and blood would be the same. It wouldn't surprise her if half the school had jumped to the same conclusion as Harry had, but there was no evidence to support that theory, nothing that would uphold in a trial.

"I told you, I don't know what I saw." Hermione stated firmly, looking the raven-haired young man sitting opposite her dead in the eyes. There was a short, but awkward pause between them before Harry stood up and snatched his invisibility cloak from Ronald, proceeding to open the compartment door.

"I need some air." He muttered in a huff, then disappeared down the aisle without another word. Letting her head fall back, Hermione let out a long sigh and closed her eyes. It worried her, seeing Harry this way. She couldn't even begin to imagine what he had planned that would require using his invisibility cloak on the train, but her gut was telling her it was nothing good. Still, running after him at this point would be futile. He needed time to let of steam and calm down. Harassing him wouldn't help anyone in the long run.

**.**

The hours passed, and as they reached the station Harry was nowhere in sight. He hadn't come back at all, surely he should have returned long before they arrived if all was well? Something was wrong. Looking over to Ron, she wasn't surprised to see there was absolutely no concern on his face at all. He was probably more worried about getting to the feast on time and stuffing his face compared to the safety of his best friend.

"Where's Harry?" She asked, hoping he might catch on to the fact she was worried and that there was probably a very good reason for her feeling that way. But as usual, he remained rather nonchalant about the whole situation and offered her a lazy shrug.

"Probably on the platform. C'mon." Maybe he was right? It would have made more sense for Harry to get off the train if he was near a door rather than trying to get back to them, especially when that could risk him missing the carriage to the Castle? For once, maybe Ron's rather casual approach to the situation was the more logical one. She was no doubt getting stressed and worried for nothing. Harry was most likely heading to the carriages, planning to meet them in the Great Hall instead of searching aimlessly for them amongst the crowd of students, ready to ramble on at them about some new evidence he'd discovered regarding Draco's latest scheme as a newly recruited Death Eater.

Turning back to look down the aisle one more time, silently hoping that she'd at least catch a glimpse of Harry so she could stop worrying, Hermione sighed and followed Ron off the train, navigating through the mass of students to get to the carriages. The sooner she arrived at the Castle, the sooner she could find Harry.

Once they arrived, she waited silently with Ron for a free carriage, watching as the students before they climbed on and were whisked away, completely unaware that the carriages were not in fact enchanted but were, in fact, being pulled along by Thestrals. It was quite strange, seeing them after all these years of them being invisible to her. And while they interested her, as all Magical Creatures did, it was still upsetting to relive and comprehend the reasons as to why she could now see them.

She could only imagine what Harry was going through, how he was feeling at this point. Sirius had been the only living connection Harry had to his parents, save for his rather cruel Aunt and Uncle who offered no insight at all. To Harry, Sirius had been the only real family he had left, and now the man was gone, killed by his own cousin no less: Bellatrix.

The whole ordeal had clearly hit Harry quite drastically, maybe that was the reason he was clinging so desperately to his Draco Malfoy Death Eater theory? He needed an outlet, a way to grieve and Malfoy had presented that opportunity quite beautifully. They were likely to run into one another, and even more likely to get into some kind of conflict. The fact Malfoy and Bellatrix shared a blood heritage, that she was his Aunt, that connection between them would likely make it all justified in Harry's eyes. While he may not have been able to get revenge on Bellatrix, hexing her Nephew would be the next best thing.

"Blaise, he should have been here by now. Something's wrong." A soft voice behind her hissed, one that she knew all too well: Pansy Parkinson. For years that voice had been a constant source of verbal abuse to Hermione so it had become very easy to recognise.

"He's a big boy Pansy, he can take care of himself." Blaise Zabini sighed through gritted teeth. His irritation at his companion was evident from his voice alone, but Hermione could detect just a hint of concern too. She figured it was safe to assume they were talking about Malfoy, and that both he and Harry disappearing at the same time was no coincidence. Pansy, despite Hermione's better judgement telling her otherwise, was right. Something was wrong. The combination of a revenge-driven Harry Potter and a pissed off Draco Malfoy was not something that filled her with an awful lot of hope.

Before she could have attempted to go back in the direction of the train and find out what on earth was happening, she felt Ron gently tap her shoulder. A carriage had just arrived. Reluctantly she climbed aboard, waiting for a few other occupants before it set off towards the Castle. Maybe he'd had words with Malfoy, but left before anything got heated, and the Slytherin was simply lingering, sulking like a child? Or maybe they'd had a scuffle and both were tending to their wounds? Oh, Merlin, she hoped it wasn't the latter. Surely they wouldn't be that stupid? Then again, given all their previous scraps, it wasn't unlikely.

Before long their carriage arrived at the school grounds and they were making their way into the Great Hall. Most of the students were already seated, chatting amongst themselves while they waited for the remainder of the student body to arrive. With each moment that passed, Hermione could feel her gaze burning into the door, waiting for Harry to walk through it without a scratch. But with each student that entered that wasn't him, she could feel that anxiety build up more and more. He hadn't been on any of the carriages before them, and he hadn't been on any of the ones after them either, given the fact they'd all now arrived as McGonagall had proceeded to introduce the first years and have them sorted into their houses. One by one they went to sit with their housemates, and yet Harry was still nowhere to be seen. Where on earth was he?

Dumbledore went through his usual welcomes and announcements, greeting the first years and warning them where to steer clear of. The sorting hat even had a few things to say this year, advising them all to remain strong in these tough times. Craning her neck, Hermione glanced at the door once more before nervously looking around the other students. Maybe he'd just sat down with someone else?

"Don' you worry, he'll be 'long soon 'nuff." Ron mumbled, mouth full of pudding.

"Will. You. Stop. Eating! Your best friend is missing!" Hermione exclaimed, hitting him on the shoulder with her book, entitled 1,000 Magical Herbs and Fungi before slamming it down on the dining table, an exhausted look spreading across her features.

"Oi! Turn around you lunatic." Ron grumbled, gesturing to the entrance to the Great Hall, which Harry had just waltzed through. Spinning around, Hermione felt a wave of relief flood her system as she spotted him approaching with Luna Lovegood in tow. But as he got closer, her eyes widened in concern, noticing his blood-splattered face.

"He's covered in blood again. Why is it he's always covered in blood?" Ginny asked.

"Looks like it's his own this time." Ron muttered. Dread washed over Hermione like a tidal wave. What had happened to him to earn such a war wound? Had he really gone and confronted Malfoy? And had the blood dripping down his chin been a result of that?

"Where have you been? And what happened to your face?!" Hermione demanded.

"Later. What did I miss?" Harry asked, completely dismissing her question as he reached for a drink, moving the blood-soaked napkin away from his nose. As she was about to protest and interrogate him further, Ron intervened and gave Harry the rundown of what had been said in his absence. Well, she'd be having words with him later on.

As Dumbledore took to his podium once more, Hermione caught sight of Ginny now holding the bloodied napkin. Softly she began to dab the damp material against his face, wiping away the last remaining trickles of blood leaving Harry's nose. The rest of the evening transpired fairly quickly. Dumbledore gave a rather chilling speech about the past of Tom Riddle, how Death Eaters were practically scratching at their doors trying to get in each waking moment, then dismissed them off to bed with a simple 'pip pip!'. Ron managed to sum up his thoughts on the conversation, as they rose from their seats, in sarcastic eloquence as 'cheerful', voicing the thoughts of many of his classmates.

Grabbing her book, Hermione followed her fellow classmates out of the Great Hall and back towards the Gryffindor common room. But as she turned, out of the corner of her, she noticed Malfoy still seated at the Slytherin table, chin resting in his palm, eyes staring off into nowhere as if he were lost in thought. There was a troubled expression that wore itself like pain on his face. Pausing for a moment, Hermione couldn't help but stare. This was a side of him she'd never seen before, a face she never thought she'd see. Despite popular belief, it would seem Draco Malfoy was not always the confident cocky young man he pranced around pretending to be. It would appear that some things did bother him.

Perhaps Dumbledore's words had an impact on him? Before she could have contemplated further, he seemed to suddenly snap out of his thoughts and looked directly at her. Their eyes locked for a brief moment before Hermione turned away and departed out of the Great Hall. Absolutely wonderful, getting caught staring at Draco Malfoy. She could imagine that would be the topic of discussion amongst the boys in Slytherin tonight. Potions was her first subject tomorrow, no doubt she'd be getting grief for it.

"Miss Granger, a word if you please?" McGonagall's voice suddenly called, ringing clear like a bell throughout the commotion amongst the corridors. Stopping dead in her tracks, Hermione turned around and headed over to her Head of House, doing her best to avoid colliding with any of her fellow students. After a little navigation, she managed to duck into the alcove McGonagall had tucked herself away in, looking up at her teacher fondly.

"Is something the matter, Professor?" Hermione asked.

"Not at all, I merely noticed you've elected to take seven subjects for your upcoming N.E.W.T exams next year. With it being roughly double the number of courses the average student takes, I just wanted to make sure you're happy to proceed with the lessons you've chosen. While I'm well aware you're a hardworking and driven student, Miss Granger, we all have our limits, I do not want to see you making yourself ill." McGonagall explained.

"Thank you for your concern Professor, but I'll be alright. I've already planned a schedule which will allow me to study for all my subjects and have reasonable breaks." Hermione stated with a soft smile. It may have been a small lie, she had breaks, but they weren't what most people would consider reasonable. Maybe reasonable to her own standards, but if it were anyone else they would definitely argue the point.

"Well, if you're insistent on going ahead with your chosen subjects, let me offer you some advice. If you find there aren't enough hours in the day, I find it always helps to spin three times, it makes catching up a lot easier." And without another word, the woman departed.


	2. Chapter 2

**WHEN MY TIME IS UP**

Chapter Two

**Author's Note: **For the purposes of bulking out the classes, just like the films, some of the characters from different years have been merged into Harry's year group. I'll try to keep changes like this to a minimum, thank you for your understanding and support!

**.**

o.O.o

Monday 2nd September 1996

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry: Gryffindor Dormitories

**.**

There was nothing quite like it, waking up feeling the duvet cuddling her in a warm embrace, the soft feathers of her pillow beneath her head, and the sun's gentle rays dancing across her skin. There was something magical about waking up in Hogwarts. Although, hearing Lavender Brown's out of tune humming did dampen her mood a bit.

"Good morning, Hermione. I hope you don't mind, I got your uniform ready for you, it's on your trunk." Katie Bell greeted with a soft smile. The girl had always been incredibly kind and considerate regarding her fellow room mates. She was almost like a Mother hen in some respects, making sure they all had everything they needed before setting off, and having practically everything ready for them before they'd even woken up.

"Thanks, Katie, that's really sweet of you." Expressing her gratitude, Hermione climbed out of bed and grabbed her neatly folded uniform, then walked over to the bathroom. Inside, Lavender was styling her hair in front of the mirror, still humming to herself.

Part of the perks of being a sixth-year student? Because there were more of them crammed into one room, the school deemed it fair to give them their own bathrooms. Five girls per room did make things a bit cramped after all, and trying to beat the younger years to the common room's shared bathroom in the morning rush hour? Yeah, that wasn't going to happen. So it was quite handy being able to wake up and just waltz straight in the bathroom without having to walk down a cold set of stone stairs or wait in a line to pee.

"Morning Hermione, it's such a beautiful day, isn't it? It's like the world is smiling at us!" Lavender grinned, practically glowing as she looked at Hermione through the mirror. The girl's overwhelming cheeriness did cause Hermione to raise a brow, but she quickly shrugged it off and responded with a nod and a smile of her own, turning around the corner to climb into the shower, placing her clothes down on the counter top, ready to change into them once she was out.

It wasn't long before Hermione was dressed and ready to start the day, descending down into the common room where Harry and Ron were waiting to escort her to breakfast like they always did. Yes, the Dark Lord was back. Yes, there were Death Eaters trying to break in the school constantly. And yes, the future was uncertain. But she took comfort in this little routine of theirs, it gave some semblance of normality to her life. Even if the word was coming to an end, at least she'd be able to have breakfast with her two best friends.

"I'm a little disappointed that you won't be joining me in potions, Harry." Hermione sighed as they sat down amongst their fellow Gryffindor students. It was going to be odd, not having at least one of her two companions with her during potions. She was so used to their company, the idle chit chat that passed between them during brewing. Not having that was definitely going to be a strange experience.

Regardless, she was still looking forward to taking the topic with a new teacher no less. Maybe this one wouldn't be as harsh to her as Snape was. From what she could gather, Professor Slughorn was quite the enthusiast for intellect and education. Several of his students had gone on making quite the accomplishments with their lives. There was Barnabas Cuffe, editor of the Daily Prophet. Not to mention Gwenog Jones, Captain of the Holyhead Harpies. From what Harry had also mentioned, Slughorn had taught his Mother.

"Me too. But, Snape was very clear on the standards that needed to be met for me to take it at N.E.W.T level. Yours truly only got Exceeds Expectations, not Outstanding." Harry shrugged, taking a sip of the orange juice that was resting within his goblet.

"You'll be gran', 'ermione, we'll be dare ter keep yer company!" The voice of Seamus Finnigan suddenly chuckled, patting the back of Dean Thomas who had his arm wrapped around Ginny Weasley. The pained look in Harry's eyes was not lost on Hermione. She knew and had known for quite some time, that he had feelings for Ginny. But out of respect to Ron, his best friend and the brother of his crush, he'd said nothing. In that time, Ginny had found comfort in the arms of Dean, while Harry was left broken-hearted.

It upset her deeply, seeing her best friend so hurt. But getting between Ginny and Dean was wrong. If things were meant to be, then they would be. But if not, things just wouldn't pan out, and maybe after some time and healing, then Harry could make a move on Ginny and tell her how he really felt. For the time being, he just needed to keep his distance, as hard as that would be for him. Somehow, Ginny always seemed to linger around Harry.

So she swiftly decided to distract him by bringing up the Quidditch try outs. Of course, it worked like a charm. It was quite amusing how easy it was to distract a man by bringing up the sport he liked. It was easy with her Father, the mere mention of cricket had him rambling for hours on end. Her Grandfather was quite fond of golf. Just bringing it up by accident would result in endless conversations about techniques, all star players and all the fond memories they had recreating the sports in their youths.

"Jaysus, luk at de time! We'd best be gettin' aff before we git caught in ter stampede for first period. Come on Dean. Git aff yer arse an' let's git movin! Yer comin' 'ermione?" Seamus exclaimed, all but grabbing Dean by the scruff of his neck before dragging him out of the Great Hall. Laughing softly, Hermione grabbed her bag and put it over her shoulder.

"I take it that's my queue to leave. I'll see you all later. Don't get into too much trouble on your free period." Hermione smiled with a playful grin, giving Ron and Harry a quick hug each before following Dean and Seamus, books clutched firmly in her arms.

**.**

Not ten minutes later, halfway into Slughorn's explanation of the lesson plan, the door to the potions class swung open and in waltzed Harry and Ron. Hermione couldn't help but frown. Not because Harry turned up, she was overjoyed to see him. Maybe Slughorn was a bit more lenient as to what grades were accepted for N.E.W.T level potions? No the reason she was frowning was that Ron was there. While she cared for him, she knew he had no interest in potions, and he was no doubt going to complain about being there incessantly.

But it was then she noticed the rather excited and flustered look spreading across Lavender's face when the two boys walked in the room. She was looking at Ron. No. Could she have a crush on him? It would explain all the lovey-dovey behaviour that morning.

"Harry m'boy! I was beginning to worry! And I see we've bought someone with us..." Slughorn grinned, clearly as overjoyed as Hermione was that Harry had shown up.

"Ron Weasley, sir. But I'm dead awful at potions, a menace really, so I probably should just be going..." Ron started, attempting to flee from the room only to be grabbed by Harry.

"Nonsense, we'll sort you out. Any friend of Harry's is a friend of mine. Right then, books out..." Slughorn continued, turning his attention back to the group of students who were gathered around the workbench, studying the cauldrons on there curiously.

"Um, sorry, sir, but I haven't got my book yet. Nor has Ron, you see..." Harry started, only to be cut off with a dismissive wave from Slughorn as he gestured to the cupboard.

"Not to worry, you can get what you need from the cupboard. Now, as I was saying, I've prepared a few concoctions this morning. Any ideas what these might be? Yes, miss…?" Slughorn explained to the class, looking out among the students, hoping one of them would answer. Hermione's hand shot straight up of course.

As she stepped forward, she caught a glimpse of Harry and Ron fighting over something in the cupboard. Rolling her eyes, she focused her attention back to the matter at hand.

"Granger, sir. That one there is Veritaserum. When taken it forces you to tell the truth. And that would be Polyjuice potion, it's quite tricky to make and can take considerable time to brew. This is Amortentia: the most powerful love potion in the world. It's rumoured to smell differently to each person, according to what attracts them. For example, I smell freshly mown grass, new parchment and spearmint toothpaste..." Hermione explained, listing through most of the potions that were laid out upon the workbench.

But when it got to the Amortentia, she could feel its effects beginning to work on her. Blushing, she stopped herself and retreated back to the crowd of students, feeling her heart beating frantically in her chest for a few moments before it slowly began to calm down. While her exposure to the potion was mere fumes at best, it was still enough to have an effect, one that didn't seem to be lost on her classmates apparently. Several of them had turned to look at her, some sceptically, others in amusement.

One person she spotted staring at her was none other than Draco Malfoy. As soon as he caught her gaze, he looked away, back down at the floor where his eyes had seemed to be firmly planted throughout the entirety of their lesson so far.

Looking away from him, Hermione watched as Harry and Ron approached the group, Hermione couldn't help but notice how Slughorn eye's shifted to her raven-haired friend, and how Harry nodded in a form of confirmation. Moving his attention back to the cauldron, Slughorn's eyes widened slightly when he noticed the mass of female students suddenly marching towards it. Grabbing the lid, he swiftly shut it.

"Now, Amorentia doesn't create actual love, of course, that's impossible. But it does cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. For that reason, it's probably the most dangerous potion in this room." As he explained its effects, Hermione noticed the girls who had approached the workbench return to their original places, rather flustered. Lavender still seemed to have a dreamy expression about her, one that was directed at Ron.

"Sir, you haven't told us what's in that one." Katie suddenly piped, causing everyone's attention to turn to the final vile, a see-through container which played host to a golden looking liquid. There was no doubt in Hermione's mind as to what it was.

"What you see before you, ladies and gentlemen is a curious little potion known as Felix Felicis. But is more commonly referred to as..."

"Liquid luck." She couldn't help it. The words left her mouth before she had a chance to even think them. The interest of all the students seemed to rise at that moment, even Draco Malfoy, whose gaze lifted off the floor, eyes awake for the first time in the lesson.

"Yes, Miss Granger. Desperately trick to make, disastrous should you get it wrong. But brewed correctly, as this has been, it has remarkable powers. One sip and you will find that all your endeavours succeed, at least until the effects wear off." Slughorn explained.

"But then why don't people drink it all the time?" Katie asked.

"Because taken in excess, it causes giddiness, recklessness and dangerous overconfidence." Slughorn stated, looking at the vile in his hand with a rather contorted expression as if he were reliving a painful memory of said experience.

"Have you ever taken it, sir?" Blaise Zabini inquired, picking up on Slughorn's expression as well. The Slytherin was probably looking for some kind of weakness to use against their teacher, Blaise had a reputation for being quite manipulative, so she'd heard.

"Twice. Once when I was twenty-five, once when I was fifty-seven. Two tablespoons taken at breakfast, two perfect days. So. This is what I offer each of you today. One tiny vile of liquid luck to the student who, in the hour that remains, manages to brew an acceptable Draught of Living Death, the recipe for which can be found on page ten of your textbooks. You should know that in all the years of my previous tenure at Hogwarts, not once did a student brew a potion of sufficient quality to claim this prize. In any event, good luck." Slughorn explained, a knowing grin on his face as he set the vial upon his desk, shimmering in a shaft of sunlight.

Not wasting a second, Hermione worked over to one of the tables and got to work gathering all her supplies. Opening the cupboard, she reached up to grab some vials from the highest shelf, having to stand on her tip toes to reach. Losing her balance, she stumbled forwards and hit her head against one of the lower shelves, wincing in pain.

"Here." A soft, but cold voice muttered. Looking to her left, she saw Draco Malfoy's hand extended out to her, two vials resting on his snow white skin. Malfoy was being nice to her? What had happened to the boy who mocked her for failing? The child who had called her a Mudblood more times than he'd rode a broom?

Well, she couldn't really call him a child now could she? He'd grown up, into quite the handsome young man. What what?! Where had that thought come from?! Blushing furiously, she took the vials from him, extending him a quick thank you before scuttling back off to her desk like some kind of confused crab.

"What the bloody hell was that all about? What did he say to you, Hermione?" Ron asked, sending daggers in Malfoy's direction, assuming her red cheeks were the result of anger from a spiteful comment in comparison to having inappropriate thoughts about the blonde haired Slytherin. Shaking her head, Hermione dismissed him and got to work on the Draught. Having a vial of Liquid Luck would be quite beneficial, not that she would ever use it for her actual exams, that would be essentially cheating. No, she had it more in mind for The Dark Lord. Maybe if a time came where she was captured and needed to escape, having some luck on her side would be reassuring.

As the minutes passed, brewing this particular Draught soon proved to be quite challenging. Sopophorous beans were flying across the room left, right and center. Ron's bean shot across the room and bounced off Katie Bell's head, causing her to look up in a mixture of confusion and pain. Barely managing to catch her own, practically having to launch herself across the table to grab it, Hermione's eyes widened in shock as she noticed Harry holding the defeated legume over his cauldron, squeezing the juice out of it.

"How did you do that?" She demanded, not meaning to sound as shocked or as confused as her tone had aired itself. Normally she was the one to help Harry and Ron when it came to this kind of thing, so to see him taking a step ahead of her was quite unusual. There was no denying Harry was very skilled when it came to potions, but she'd always been just that little bit better. It was not pride or smugness fulling her surprise. She'd just got so used to being their go to for help when it came to classes. She rarely went a lesson without them begging her for help, so it was somewhat a breath of fresh air.

"Crush it. Don't cut it." Harry offered, looking over at her with eager excitement.

"No, the instructions specifically say to cut." Hermione protested.

"No, really..." Harry started, only to have her cut him off as she swatted him on the shoulder with her textbook and continued trying to cut the bean.

More time passed, more students were struggling to complete this Draught. Cauldrons were overflowing, the liquids were turning into sentient slime, Lavender seemed completely oblivious to all the chaos going on around her, absently stirring her empty cauldron as she eyed up Ron for the tenth time in the lesson so far.

Hermione was becoming more and more frustrated with each passing minute. Her hair had become bushier from all the vapour coming out of her cauldron, glowering at Harry as he seemed to breeze through the potion without a single hiccup. Dragging her hands down her face, she took a few steps back from her work station and headed to the cupboard to gather the next set of ingredients.

As she walked past the Slytherin dominated table, she witnessed Draco Malfoy's hand slip whilst holding a knife over some ingredients, the falter in his movements causing him to cut himself in the process. Cursing under his breath, Malfoy dropped the knife and grabbed his wand, casting a quick healing spell to get rid of the little cut.

"You alright Draco?" Blaise asked, looking up from his cauldron, assessing his friend with a calm, but concerned and calculated gaze. A brief nod from Draco was all the confirmation Blaise seemed to need before he returned back to his work. Once more, Malfoy's gaze seemed to turn to her, their eyes accidentally locking for the third time since arriving at Hogwarts, but this time he didn't look away. Averting her gaze, Hermione grabbed a handful of random ingredients, not even thinking as to what she actually needed before heading back to her workstation.

Their hour to brew the Draught was over in what felt like the blink of an eye to Hermione. Slughorn began wending his way amongst the cauldrons, nodding with sympathy at the fiascos before him. But when he got to Harry's he stopped dead in his tracks, staring in disbelief at the pearly sheen of the bubbling potion. Pulling out a leaf, he dropped it into the cauldron, watching as it disappeared from existence within mere seconds.

"Merlin's Beard! It's perfect. So perfect I daresay one drop would kill us all! Your Mother was a dab hand at potions, but this! My, my, what can't you do m'boy? Perhaps you will save us all in the end..." Slughorn mused.

Hermione's heart tightened in her chest when she noticed his smile falter. That had been unfair on Slughorn's part. All this fuss and drama over Harry being the Chosen One was something she expected amongst students? But coming from a Teacher, during a class no less in front of impressionable young minds? It was highly inappropriate.

"Here you are then, as promised. One bottle of Felix Felicis. Use it well." Slughorn grinned, offering out the vile to Harry who slowly reached out and took the glittering vial. Reluctant claps followed from his classmates, standing on ceremony rather than sincerity.

The lesson ended shortly afterwards, Harry and Ron going their separate ways whilst Hermione planned on spending her free period in the library, studying for her next potions lesson. Taking her time to gather her belongings, Hermione didn't notice it was just her and Malfoy left in the classroom until she started heading towards the door. Once again, he seemed completely lost in thought, staring off into space as he had in the Great Hall.

"Mr Malfoy? Is everything alright, m'boy? You look a little pale." Slughorn asked, placing a hand on Draco's shoulder. The contact was enough to snap him out of his trance and send a look of venom towards his potion's Professor. Without saying a word, Malfoy grabbed his bag and stormed out of the classroom, barging past Hermione in the process, causing her to drop all of her books on the floor. Taking a moment to close her eyes and take in a deep breath, Hermione decided against yelling at him and calling him a prick. It wasn't worth it.

Instead, she knelt down and started gathering her discarded items one by one. But after a few moments, she heard footsteps travelling back towards her, and a pair of shiny black shoes soon appeared before her. Looking up, she found the owner of said shoes was none other than Draco Malfoy. Silently, avoiding eye contact with her, he knelt down in front of her and assisted her in gathering her belongings.

For a few moments, she just sat there, completely bewildered until he offered her the objects he'd collected, hands extended out just like before with the vials.

"O-Oh. Thank you." Hermione muttered, taking the books from him before tucking them safely into her bag. The ones that didn't fit would simply have to be carried in her arms.

"I'm sorry." It had been so faint, so soft, that Hermione wouldn't have believed she heard it if she hadn't seen the apologetic look on his face. But before she could have responded, he reached out and removed something from her hair, a Niffler feather from the looks of it. After he tucked it into his pocket, Hermione blushed, stood up and ran to the library.


	3. Chapter 3

**WHEN MY TIME IS UP**

Chapter Three

**Author's Note: **So far I'm writing this story out in bulk, and then dividing it into chapters just in case I get a bout of writer's block, that way, you won't be waiting for ages to get a new update, so I'm sorry if this one feels a bit shorter than the rest. But I hope you enjoy this chapter!

.

o.O.o

.

No matter how much she tried, she could not get it off her mind. She'd read the same paragraph at least six times now, trying to force herself to focus on something besides her most recent encounter with Draco Malfoy. But it was pointless, no matter what she did, or what book she turned to, nothing captured her attention more so than his words had.

"_I'm sorry."_

Draco Malfoy had never apologised to her. He'd never even shot a look of sympathy her way in all the years she'd known him. His opinion of her was very low, and he'd made them quite clear numerous times. But there had been such a look of sincerity in her eyes that she believed this had been genuine. He was not mocking her or standing on formalities, he had really meant what he said. But that lead her to her next train of thought: why was he acting that way? What had changed to cause such a reaction?

Now that she thought about it, Slughorn had been right. Draco looked considerably paler compared to his usual fair complexion. And the way he'd stared off into nowhere, several times now, completely lost in his own mind, gave Hermione the impression something wasn't quite right with him. For some strange reason, she wanted to find out what. It wasn't every day a Pure-Blood Wizard with a low opinion of Muggle Borns apologised to one. Especially one who had been raised by Lucius Malfoy of all people.

Pulling out an empty notebook from her bag and grabbing her quill, she dipped it in ink before beginning to jot down her encounters with Draco Malfoy. Maybe making a note of them and what she'd seen would help her determine what was going on with him.

_Sunday 1st September: Malfoy was the last to leave the Great Hall after dinner. He was staring off into space, deep in thought it would appear. He caught me looking at him, but said nothing._

_Monday 1st September: Malfoy has spoken to me, and glanced in my direction numerous times so far today. In potions, he handed me two vials, glanced at me as I was identifying the potions, and apologised after bumping into me and helped me pick up my books. He removed what appeared to be a Niffler feather from my hair and put it in his pocket. Unsure as to why._

Closing the notebook, she tucked it back into her bag and returned her attention to her book on Advanced Potions, hoping that she'd be able to get a head start on their next lesson. Being all but annihilated today by Harry made her determined to do better. There was no way she was going to struggle or fall behind like that again, in any of her classes.

"Hermione! Thank Merlin I found you. Can we talk?" The soft voice of Ginny Weasley gasped, relief seeming to fill every aspect of her voice. Looking up from her book, Hermione greeted the red-haired woman with a bright smile, gesturing for her to sit down in the seat opposite. But as Ginny sat down, it was then Hermione was able to notice the slight redness to her eyes, the wetness of her cheeks. She'd been crying.

"Ginny, what's wrong?" Hermione asked, reaching out to hold her friend's hand.

"It's Dean. We had a fight. Our first fight. This morning, before you and Harry came in, he was all but screaming at me for helping Harry last night with his nose, said he saw the way I looked at him, that I shouldn't be touching other guys when I'm with him." Ginny sighed.

"Well, all disrespect intended, but Dean is being an absolute ass. He can't control you, Ginny. You're your own person, you can talk to whoever you like. Besides, you were only helping Harry. It wasn't like you were raking your hands all over him. But I suggest keeping a little distance from Dean, give him today to calm down. I'm sure he'll see reason once he's had some time to think and come grovelling back. But don't let him think he's the boss of you. Make that very clear to him." Hermione advised.

It was always difficult, love. Not that Hermione had much experience in that respect. Sure, she'd had some crushes growing up, but nothing she could ever say were serious feelings. But she'd seen it happen enough times to know it wasn't always smooth sailing. Plus there was the fact Ginny had always had a crush on Harry from the first moment she saw him. But when his attention was swept up by Cho Chang last year, something changed in Ginny. Hermione noticed her talking to other guys as if trying to distract herself.

Was that what Dean was to her? A distraction? Or was she simply trying to move on with someone else? There had been times where she'd seen them together, both in and out of school, looking completely head over heels for one another. So maybe there were some real feelings there, maybe Ginny was serious about Dean? But now that Harry was single again, and pining after her, how long that would last Hermione couldn't say. So for the good of all, Hermione decided to keep Harry's feelings towards Ginny to herself.

"Thanks, Hermione, I know I can always count on you." Ginny smiled, her shoulders instantly relaxing. Giving Ginny's hands a gentle squeeze, Hermione smiled back at her.

"Don't mention it. Tell you what, me and my dorm mates always have a slumber party of sorts after the first day of lessons. It's kind of a tradition. You should come and join us, maybe it'll help take your mind off things?" Hermione offered.

It had started during their third year, when Parvati Patil suggested playing a game of truth or dare after their first day back at Hogwarts, then it extended to pampering sessions, fun little games, and just generally having a good time. It seemed to Ever since, they'd made it a tradition, sometimes inviting others to join in on their fun as well. The more the merrier.

"That sounds great Hermione, and I really appreciate the offer, but I've already made plans for tonight. But thank you anyway. I have to get going, but I'll see you at dinner?" Ginny muttered softly, politely declining Hermione's offer, giving her a hug before departing. Watching until Ginny was out of sight, Hermione paused for a moment, lost in her own thoughts. It seemed everyone was in love. Harry was fawning over Ginny, Ginny was stuck between him and Dean, Lavender was clearly drooling over Ronald, who in turn had the hots for anything with a nice pair of legs. Romilda Vane was supposedly trying to slip Harry a love potion, as well as half of the girls in their year.

Ever since the Dark Lord had returned, Harry had gained a lot of attention. Of course, the majority was from the press, but a lot of students had now started believing that he was the Chosen One, and a lot of her female classmates found that very appealing. So much so that they were apparently willing to take extreme measures to earn his affections.

Cormac McLaggen seemed to have some interest in her. The thought alone was enough to make her shudder, he was such an awful human being, and his desires were pretty much written across his face. He was not looking for a relationship, he was looking for a good lay. Plus there was very little intelligence residing within that brain of his. She would get a far more insightful conversation out of Viktor Krum and all the man ever spoke about was Quidditch. Still, she enjoyed writing to him. He was a good friend, someone she could turn to outside her usual circle and could offer her unbiased opinions or advise.

In her most recent letter, she'd expressed her concern about the Dark Lord's return, how people were going missing, the attack on Diagon Alley, how she was worried there would be no one left or willing to stand up to him. But thankfully, Viktor had swiftly calmed her nerves by telling her as long person was still fighting then it wasn't over, and that he would fight to his death if it called for it. While she didn't want him to throw his life away, it reassured her knowing there was at least one person, besides her and Harry, who wanted to fight. That reminded her, she really did need to respond to him. It had almost been a week since his reply had reached her.

In all fairness, starting a new school year, she was sure he'd understand if she was a little late with her responses. But Hermione made a mental note to get her reply done tonight during her pamper night with the girls. It would definitely help her relax after a long day.

**.**

Nowhere to be seen. But this time it wasn't Harry. It was Malfoy. Glancing over at the Slytherin table at dinner, Hermione couldn't spot him anywhere, and it would seem his friends were doing the same as her, particularly Pansy who had quite the look of worry plastered across her face. Something was definitely going on with her Slytherin classmate.

Excusing herself, Hermione got up from the dinner table, leaving the Great Hall. It was crazy, but there was this awful feeling spreading through her. Almost as if something was telling her to go find Malfoy, and despite having no idea where to look her body seemed to have that covered. She marched down the corridors, up the stairs, round the corners, never pausing for a single moment to think about where she was going. It wasn't until she came to a dead-end that she finally stopped, staring at a wall.

Why had she come here? Before she could have thought on it any further, intricate markings started forming on the wall before her, taking the shape of a door in mere seconds. Leaping behind a column, Hermione watched curiously as the doors opened and Draco Malfoy walked out, brows furrowed and looking down at something in his hand. After squinting her eyes, Hermione was able to determine it was the Niffler feather he'd removed from her hair earlier, but now it was smoking, glowing dimly as it silently burned.

After a moment Malfoy dropped the feather onto the ground, watching as it fluttered slowly in a hue of orange embers and smoke. But he then suddenly looked up, catching her eye for a brief moment before she retreated behind the column, cursing to herself. It had been too short of a time for him to identify her, but he was now aware someone was spying on him. She could hear his footsteps approaching cautiously, his wand being drawn.

"Whose there?" He demanded. Pulling up her cloak so the hood rested over her head, Hermione quickly rushed down the corridor, yelping in shock when some kind of spell was sent her way and missed by mere inches, causing parts of the wall to break off and crumble to the ground behind her. Was he insane?! Attacking someone for spying on him?!

Hermione didn't stop running until she got back to the Gryffindor common room, her heart beating frantically in her chest. Now she was within the safety of House's protection, she could think through what she'd seen clearly. Malfoy had clearly come out of the Room of Requirement, with the burnt remains of the feather he'd taken her from earlier. He seemed confused by this, so it obviously wasn't him that burned the feather. But why would this be so concerning to him? It was just a feather. Unless it played part in something more? But if so, what exactly was Draco Malfoy up to?

Had Harry been right? Had Malfoy been recruited by the Dark Lord? No. That was ridiculous. It was probably best she kept this news on Draco Malfoy to herself, at least until she had a more concrete idea of what Draco was doing in the Room of Requirement. Until then, she would just have to keep an eye on him, and try to find out what he was doing. And find some way to do it a bit more carefully, seeing as she nearly got caught just now. If it hadn't been for her cloak, Malfoy would have known it was her.

Stopping dead in her tracks, Hermione grimaced at what she was doing. She was spying on Malfoy, invading his privacy. That's exactly what she'd been so irritated at Harry for doing. Now she was just being the world's biggest hypocrite. Then again, Harry's motives were to find out what 'evil deeds' Draco was up to. Hermione was merely concerned for her classmate. There was something wrong, he looked ill, and she wanted to make sure he was alright. Despite all the hardship she'd gone through because of him, he was still human. Treating him unfairly because of a few nasty comments when he was in trouble was cruel.

Shaking her head clear of those thoughts, she ascended the stairs before reaching her dorm. There she saw that the girls were already dressed in their pyjamas, huddled in a circle of pillows and blankets in the center of the room, giggling amongst themselves. As she walked in, they all turned to look at her, eyes bright with laughter and smiles plastered on their faces. Lavender, Katie, Parvati and Romilda, all four of them alive with joy.

"Hermione! There you are, we were wondering where you got to! Get changed and get your ass sat down, we've got a fun night ahead of us!" Katie grinned. Saluting her friend's instructions, Hermione raced off to the bathroom to get dressed into her nightwear before returning and joining them on the floor, sitting down on her pillow to avoid becoming uncomfortable, and wrapping a blanket around herself to keep warm.

Once she was comfortable, Katie handed her a steaming cup of hot chocolate, and Hermione couldn't help but smile as she noticed a dollop of whipped cream on the top. Katie really did pay attention to her friends, what they liked and didn't like. Not even Harry or Ron could remember what her favourite topping for this particular beverage was.

"Now, where were we? Oh yes, we were talking about how Lavender's got a crush on Ron Weasley!" Romilda all but squealed, causing Lavender to go bright red and hide her face behind a pillow as the girls erupted into a fit of giggles.

"You must have noticed how she was acting in potions today Hermione. I thought she was going to scream at him like some crazed fangirl when he walked in the room. I couldn't get two words out of her, she was too busy basically drooling over him." Katie scoffed.

"That's not true! I wasn't drooling! Was I…?" Lavender groaned, embarrassment flooding her features. Wrapping her arm around Lavender's shoulders, Katie smiled at her reassuringly, squeezing the girl's shoulders.

"If it makes you feel any better, I don't think he noticed. Ronald is a bit oblivious when it comes to things like that." Hermione shrugged. She didn't know why, but the idea of Lavender and Ron together was upsetting to her. Maybe because she was simply being overprotective of her friend? It wasn't like she had feelings for him herself. Sure, he made her laugh and smile, but she'd always viewed him as more as a Brother than anything else.

"Boys. They're impossible. They don't know what's standing right in front of them unless they get hit in the face with it." Parvati huffed. For a moment, Hermione was taken back to the moment where she punched Malfoy in the face. Redness rose to her cheeks, why on earth was she thinking of that memory? And more importantly, why was she so flustered?

"From what I hear, Hermione has a few admirers this year." Romilda cooed, throwing some popcorn at the bushy-haired woman who rolled her eyes in response.

Maybe Cormac, but that was it. She wasn't exactly the prettiest Witch in Hogwarts, not in her own opinion anyway. Girls like Romilda Vane spent hours in the morning preparing themselves, putting on makeup and styling their hair. Hermione didn't make an effort in that regard, sure she made sure her hair looked tidy and her uniform was smart, but she rarely used makeup. Save for the Yule Ball of course, or at a family get-together.

So she doubted that there would be anyone at this castle, save for Cormac, he saw her as a possible romantic pursuit. And it wasn't like she had any interests in anyone anyway. But that didn't mean she wasn't interested in learning about who may see her that way.

"Like who?" Hermione asked, emphasising the disbelief and amusement on her voice as much as possible to mask the curiously that was riddling it.

"Well, Cormac McLaggen for one. Mr Chiselled Chin has been watching you from the moment you set foot off the Hogwarts Express. I can all but feel the testosterone radiating off him every time you walk past the man. It's quite repulsive actually." Parvati shuddered.

"I'd rather kiss Mr Filch." Hermione groaned, causing the girls to erupt into more giggles.

Taking a sip of her hot chocolate, she slowly settled into that welcomed sense of relaxation. These evenings always had a way of calming her down, taking the woes and worries of the day away and replacing those feelings with nothing but content.

"I heard the Hufflepuffs talking. Apparently, Wayne Hopkins has a crush on you too. He's been trying to get the courage to ask you out since last year, according to Hannah Abbot." Romilda added, giving Hermione a sly smirk.

Well, Hannah Abbot was a reliable source of gossip. She seemed to know everything about everyone in the castle. If you wanted to know the latest scoop, then you went to Hannah. Though Hermione had known for a long time that this particular female Hufflepuff had been crushing on Neville Longbottom since first year, but had never made her feelings known. Why? That was anyone's guess. Maybe behind that confident exterior was a really shy girl? Or maybe she just had no confidence when it came to boys? Who knows.

"Isn't he the one with all that fluffy black hair and sexy brown eyes? Ooh, Hermione, all the hot guys are coming to you this year." Katie purred, wiggling her eyebrows.

"It's not just those two. From what I heard, Draco Malfoy was seen helping you with your books today Hermione, and took a feather out of your hair, care to explain?" Lavender grinned. Silence filled the room, and all eyes were on Hermione. Her cheeks turned red, and she would have died from embarrassment if there hadn't been a knock on the door.


	4. Chapter 4

**WHEN MY TIME IS UP**

Chapter Four

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the delays in posting a new chapter, I've been very busy with work! And I'm sorry if these chapters feel like they're moving rather slowly. And I promise the time for time-turners is fast approaching, these first few chapters are more for setting up some important details that will possibly foreshadow future events to come, as well as set the scene and Hermione's relationship with Draco before anything major happens. Consider it a prologue of sorts if you will, prior to the main action. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter, again, I'm sorry if it feels a little short.

**.**

o.O.o

Tuesday 3rd September 1996

Hogwarts Grounds, Quidditch Pitch

Hermione grimaced as she watched Harry try to gain control of the noisy students applying for the Quidditch team. Despite being sat all the way up in the stands, she could still hear what was being said fairly clearly. It wasn't until Ginny snapped at them all to shut it was Harry finally able to explain what was going to happen during their drills.

Ginny. She owed that girl big time. If it hadn't been for her sudden appearance at the slumber party last night, Hermione would have been harassed by the girls about Draco Malfoy's encounter with her yesterday, and how this somehow confirmed his crush on her.

As it turns out, Dean had cornered Ginny in the common room after catching her with Harry and Ron, laughing away as they studied together. Dean pulled her to one side and given her a full lecture about how she was his girlfriend, which meant she couldn't talk to any other male in the school, even her own Brother it would seem. Ginny, wanting to get away from it all, had run upstairs and had originally planned to go to bed. But she changed her mind halfway up the stairs and decided to take Hermione up on her offer to join them.

Lavender and Romilda instantly ushered her in when they saw the tears falling down her cheeks, while Parvati had gone to get an extra pillow and blanket for their guest. Katie, on the other hand, had taken up making Ginny a hot chocolate, seeming to somehow know the redhead's favourite topping was marshmallows.

For hours they'd talked, listened to Ginny vent, and did their best to help cheer her up. Many Manicures, pedicures and poorly told jokes later, the girl's spirits were very much lifted. Katie gave up her bed for the night, allowing Ginny to stay as long as she wanted, whilst opting to sleep on the floor herself. A Mother Hen to the bone it would seem.

Even now, amongst the chaos and pressure of the Quidditch try-outs, Katie still approached Ginny every now and then to make sure she was alright. It was a very sweet gesture, one that made Hermione grateful for knowing her.

Out of the corner of her eye, Hermione noticed Cormac approach Ron. The two seemed to be having a discussion before Cormac looked up at her, giving Ron a lewd wink and sauntered off. Shuddering, she could only imagine what that conversation was about.

And so began the match. Ron and Cormac both took their positions as Keepers, waiting for the moment they would need to take action. Ginny flew swiftly across the pitch, handling the Quaffle with ease. Despite trying to keep up with her, two second years collided mid-air as she did a barrel roll to escape them. Throwing the Quaffle at one of the hoops, Cormac quickly leapt in and made a rather brilliant save.

Back and forth it went, Cormac, Ron, Cormac, Ron. Each managed to make the saves when needed, though Ron seemed to be doing so by the skin of his teeth. Watching the Quaffle, Hermione smiled and cheered as Katie snatched the Quaffle with one hand, getting past two defenders beautifully before making a slick pass to Dean. He, in turn, flew up high into the air, then let the Quaffle roll off his fingers, right into Ginny's hands as she flew past below. It would seem their argument last night was a thing of the past. Everything fixed.

If it hadn't been for Harry yelling 'LOOK OUT', Hermione never would have noticed Seamus sending a Bludger rocketing into the stands. Ducking down, she covered her head with her hands, grimacing as a group of onlookers scattered and dove out of the way, save for Neville who rather elegantly just moved to the side to avoid being hit.

Getting back up and into her seat, Hermione watched two more students collided, third years she believed, allowing Cormac to make another save. Moments later, Ron followed suit, despite originally having gone the wrong way, managing to save the shot by hitting the Quaffle with the back of his broom.

As more time passed, the match seemed to get more intense, everyone wanting to prove their worth and make the team. Demelza Robins, who was bent low over the broomstick, pinned the Quaffle under her chin, managing to dodge two bludgers and a pair of beaters. In their confusion, they failed to notice the bludgers making their return trip and in desperation tried to fend them off when it was too late, only to end up hitting each other instead. As they plummeted to the ground, Harry cast a quick _arresto momentum _to prevent any major injuries to the two players.

However, the bludgers the pair had originally tried to dodge ricochetted off one another, flying into the stands once more. Neville somehow managed to dodge them yet again, this time sliding to the left while the group who had returned scattered again.

Another save from Cormac. Another save from Ron, in the form of the Quaffle bouncing off his head as he somehow manages to spin upside down on his broom. Lavender clapped furiously at Ron's save, cheering him on almost relentlessly. Oh yeah, the girl had it bad.

Soon enough, the match was nearing its end, leaving only Ron and Cormac on the pitch. The other players were tending to their wounds, applying ice packs, tape and bandages to tender and rather bruised skin. Cormac seemed cool, confident and clear while Ron was incredibly sweaty and nervous looking.

"Alright. Cormac. Ron. It's down to you two for Keeper. We'll decide it with a shoot out. Demelza, you'll bring the Quaffle against Cormac. Ginny, you'll take Ron." Harry stated.

"Hang on. She's his sister. How do I know she won't toss him a floater?" Cormac huffed.

"Piss off Cormac, how 'bout I toss you a floater?" Ginny all but snarled, glaring at him.

"Quiet! I'm Captain, we do it my way. Now line up. On three. One. Two...Three!" Harry exclaimed, watching as Demelza and Ginny rocketed forwards. Ron was weaving about nervously while Cormac seemed to hover in place, a confident sneer on his face.

Watching nervously, Hermione tensed slightly as Demelza hunkered over her broom once again, flying like an arrow and then went into a wide, sweeping slide. Ginny meanwhile blasted over the pitch, ginger hair streaming behind her like flames, and then rolled recklessly to the side. At this rate, Cormac was going to wipe the floor with Ron. She knew how much her friend wanted this, so with her face buried in her fingers, Hermione muttered a quick confudus charm as Demelza threw the Quaffle at the goal.

At the last moment, Cormac inexplicably rolled his broom to the right and the Quaffle sailed right past his shoulder, through the goal. Ron, who was zig-zagging about crazily nearly fell off his broom but managed to right himself in his panic and deflect Ginny's Quaffle with his forehead. Cheers erupted from the stands, mainly coming from Lavender, and Hermione smiled as she noticed Harry having to restrain himself and his joy.

"Isn't he brilliant?" Lavender gasped, eyes firmly locked on Ron. Hermione looked over at the young girl balefully, suddenly surprised by the feelings of hate that came over her. Looking over at Cormac, who was eyeing up his broom in pure confusion, Hermione stood up and slowly slipped away, planning on heading back to the Castle when she noticed Draco Malfoy leaning up against one of the Slytherin decorated stands, eyeing up Harry.

What on earth was he doing here? Maybe spying on the opposing team to get an idea of how made the cut so he could report back to his own teammates. Slytherin had already had their try-outs yesterday after all, and word spread very quickly when Draco secured his old role as Seeker. It would seem Harry was going to be seeing a lot of Malfoy this year.

What she was not expecting was for his gaze to suddenly move away from Harry and land on her once again. Looking back to the stands, she groaned when she noticed Lavender Brown staring with her jaw practically dropping to the floor, quickly changing into a knowing smirk. In her distracted state, Hermione failed to notice Malfoy approach her and grab her by the arm until the feeling of his hand on her became present.

Before she knew it, Draco Malfoy was dragging her away from the Quidditch pitch, and despite struggling as much as she could, he would not let go of her arm for anything.

"Malfoy! Get off me this instant!" Hermione hissed, reaching down to pull out her wand. She didn't want to hurt him, but she would if it became necessary. In the blink of an eye, he'd grabbed her wrist and spun her around, pinning her hands above her head before pushing her back against a nearby tree trunk. Gasping in shock, Hermione's grip on her wand released as a spark of pain was sent shooting up her spine.

"Why were you spying on me last night?" Malfoy demanded, staring straight into her eyes as she struggled against him, not seeming to give a damn if anyone walked past them.

"I don't know what you're implying, but unless you want to get another shiner on your face like you did in the third year, I suggest you let me go now!" Hermione snapped. His expression didn't falter, there was no concern or fear in his eyes. He didn't care if she hit him. What had caused that kind of relaxed attitude to the threat of violence? Surely a vain little ferret like Draco would care if his face was mucked up, even for a moment or two?

When his head moved closer to her own, when his lips were mere centimetres away from her ear, Hermione couldn't help but tense up. It sparked off reactions in her body that she had no control over, her heart rate was elevated, her breath hitched in her throat.

"You know very well what I'm implying. I saw you as you were running off. Stay out of my business Granger, if you know what's best for you." Malfoy whispered, his voice low but in no means threatening. He quickly let her go and stormed off to the castle. That wasn't a threat. It was a warning. But what was he warning her about? And why? Why did he feel the need to keep her out of harm's way?

Picking up her wand, Hermione took a few moments to compose herself, straightening out her uniform before going back to the Castle herself. It was getting late, and no doubt Harry and Ron would be waiting for her in the common room to discuss every single detail of the try-outs. Even though she'd been there, watching with her own eyes, they were still going to recite the whole thing off by heart to her, she just knew it.

**.**

"Have to admit, I thought I was going to miss that last one. Hope Cormac's not taking it too hard. Has a bit of a thing for you, Hermione, Cormac." Ron grinned from his place on the sofa, cracking walnuts he'd gathered to snack on. Looking up from her paper, Hermione rolled her eyes.

"He's vile." She responded, keeping her answer short and to the point. She had no interest in McLaggen, so if that's what he'd been talking to about Ron earlier, to try and find out how she felt about him, now he'd know in very plain and simple terms, that way there was no means of any misunderstandings.

Glancing back at Ron, she noticed how he'd taken a brief glance over at Lavender. The girl seemed to light up like a Christmas tree at his attention. Once more, Hermione found herself becoming rather irritated by the exchanges between them, but she couldn't figure out why. Suddenly her thoughts were distracted when Harry, who had been reading his Advanced Potions textbook, leaned across to her, pointing at a notation in the margin of the book. Frowning at the words, Hermione took them in for a few moments.

"_Sectumsempra – for enemies."_

"No, I have not. And if you had a shred of self-respect you would turn that book in." Hermione spat. That book was dangerous, not only was Harry lying to his Professor by not handing it in, and taking credit for the work he had not truly done himself, it also had things she'd never seen before written inside. Who knows what that spell did?

"Not bloody likely. He's top of the class. Even better than you, Hermione. Slughorn thinks he's a genius." Ron chuckled, earning a withering glance from the young woman, returning the gaze with a confused and questioning one of his own.

"Well, I'd like to know just whose that book was. Let's take a look, shall we?" Hermione stated, reaching out to take the book from Harry, who recoiled and held it out of her reach.

"No." He blurted out in a rather panicked tone, standing up to try and get away from her.

"Why not?" Hermione asked, suspicion filling her voice, getting up before essentially chasing him around the Gryffindor common room.

"It's...old. The binding is fragile." Harry shrugged, having probably just thought of that excuse on the spot. Letting out a scoff, Hermione made a grab for the book, only to have Harry once again move it out of her reach, tucking it behind his back. Out of nowhere, Ginny suddenly appeared, snatching the book from his grasp and opened it.

"Who's the Half-Blood Prince?" She asked.

"Who?" Hermione and Ron both asked in unison.

"That's what it says, right here: _This book is property of the Half-Blood Prince._" Ginny explained, reading the small passage out loud before turning the book and pointing to the frontispiece so the rest of their small group could see.

Not waiting another moment, Harry snatched the book away from Ginny before racing up the stairs. The three exchanged curious and concerned glances before Ron followed his friend, probably intending to calm him down and find out what was wrong.

Sighing softly, Hermione grabbed her newspaper and sat down on the sofa, enjoying the feeling of the fire's warmth spreading across her skin. Ginny sat down next to her moments later, a playful grin spreading across her face.

"If you even think about saying what I think you're going to say..." Hermione started, only to be cut off as Ginny leaned in close, whispering to her in pure uncontainable excitement.

"Is it true Draco Malfoy pinned you up against a tree after try-outs?!"

"Ginny! Shush! Someone might hear you! The last thing I want is for rumours to start spreading when no one actually knows what really happened." Hermione groaned.

"Well, tell me then." Ginny pleaded, resting her head on Hermione's shoulder, blinking up at her with wide eyes like a puppy begging for food.

After a few short moments of pause, Hermione sighed and reluctantly gave in. Grabbing Ginny by the hand, she guided her up to her own room where they could at least talk privately. Lavender seemed to be stuck in a trance after Ron had looked in her direction. Parvati was spending most of the evening with her sister and Katie was catching up with Leanne. Romilda was apparently in the library, researching Amortentia, so she and Ginny would have the whole place to themselves to talk and not risk anyone overhearing.

Opening the door, Hermione sat down at the head of her bed, while Ginny politely settled herself down at the foot. Waiting expectantly with wide eyes and a big grin, Ginny watched Hermione's every movement in preparation for this rather thrilling tale.

"Before I say anything, you have to promise not to tell Harry or Ron. I don't want them spiralling this out of control." Hermione instructed.

"Oh my god, Hermione, are you and Malfoy…?!" Ginny gasped, covering her hands with her mouth as her eyes widened in shock and delight.

"No! It's not like that! Harry thinks Draco is a Death Eater. If I told him what I saw he'll only jump to conclusions and hunt the poor man down like a dog. This has to stay between us, even I don't know what's going on." Hermione explained.

"I promise. So, tell me what happened!" Ginny grinned. And so she did. Every little detail.


	5. Chapter 5

**WHEN MY TIME IS UP**

* * *

Chapter Five

**Author's Note: **At this present moment in time, for subjects outside of potions, I'm taking a lot of inspiration from various articles online, and roleplay based forums where they help create lessons from scratch. I recommend Hexrpg for any of you searching.

o.O.o

Wednesday 4th September 1996

Hogwarts Castle, Great Hall

"Ginny, if you stare at him any harder you'll burn a hole between his eyes." Hermione groaned, suddenly regretting her choice on spilling the beans about Draco Malfoy's latest interactions towards her. At first, the redhead had been 'oohing' and awwing' at how Draco had helped her during class and apologised for knocking her books to the floor. But when Hermione had explained she caught him coming out of the room of requirements, how he'd sent some kind of spell at her, and then warned her to stay out of her business, Ginny had taken a very different attitude towards the Slytherin in question.

It had taken a lot of begging and convincing to stop Ginny from hunting down Malfoy and teaching him a 'well deserved' lesson yesterday evening. But somehow she'd managed to calm down her friend enough to limit her actions to mere glaring. Still, she wasn't exactly attempting to be subtle about it. What's worse was that she was drawing attention from Harry and Ron, both of whom were catching on Ginny was quite pissed off. No doubt they'd start interrogating the pair soon enough, demanding to know what was going on.

Nudging Ginny in the side with her elbow, Hermione shot her friend a warning glance, letting her know that other people were getting suspicious, hoping she would remember the whole point Hermione had opened up to her in the first place was because she promised not to tell Harry or Ron anything. Reluctantly, Ginny tore her gaze away from Malfoy and took a long swig of orange juice before proceeding to eat her breakfast.

"So...uh, the Hufflepuff Quidditch try-outs are being held today after classes. Ron and I are going to go watch, to show our support but also see who we're going to be up against, did either of you want to come with us?" Harry asked. Hermione was quite surprised at that moment. Harry was asking another man's girlfriend to go watch Quidditch with him?

Well, that took some courage, especially when the boyfriend in question was sitting next to Ginny. However, the selectiveness of Harry's invitation seemed to go right over Dean's head. Wrapping an arm around Ginny's shoulder, the young man smiled brightly.

"That's a great idea, Harry, what do you say Gin, wanna come along?" Dean asked, having apparently invited himself to join the group. Blushing slightly, the young woman shook her head and gently slid herself out from underneath Dean's arm, standing up after grabbing her bag from the floor, where it had been waiting patiently to be retrieved.

"Not today, I promised Luna I'd study with her after classes. Maybe we can all go watch the Ravenclaw try-outs tomorrow?" Ginny suggested, then bid the group a farewell as she walked off, probably heading to class a bit early. The disappointment on Harry's face was clear, but he quickly dismissed it as Dean started talking about what the great time the four of them were going to have. Raising a finger, Hermione interjected him.

"Sorry boys, but make that three. I'm going to get a head start on my astronomy project. Maybe you could make it a guy's night? Invite Seamus and Neville along too. When was the last time you all hung out without us girls? Food for thought." Hermione shrugged, standing up to gather her belongings before waving goodbye and leaving the Great Hall.

Looking down at her personal schedule, Hermione smiled when she saw that Ancient Runes was her first lesson of the day. Professor Bathsheda Babbling was definitely one of Hermione's favourite teachers at Hogwarts. Her lessons were always so thrilling and descriptive, she couldn't get enough of the older witch's lectures and assignments. So she made the effort to be slightly earlier than the rest of her classmates for their first lesson, to greet her Professor in a bit more of a personal matter.

However, when she arrived at the door to the classroom, Hermione soon discovered she wasn't the only one who had intended to arrive with a bit of time to spare. Leaning against the wall adjacent to the door was Daphne Greengrass. Her long blonde hair held back neatly by a black fabric headband, her porcelain skin was clear of any flaws or imperfections. She was a very pretty young woman, and Hermione could understand why a lot of the boys in her year, at some point during their education, had a crush on her.

Ronald had admitted in their fourth year to have the hots for her, but this was after seeing her cheer on Cedric Diggory, bouncing around in a tight vest top with pompoms. In fact, that was probably when a lot of the boys started noticing Daphne Greengrass, in both higher and lower years as well. If memory served correctly, even Fred and George had attempted to put the moves on her at once point, but the blonde had politely declined.

When Hermione approached the door, Daphne looked up from the floor and studied her for a moment before giving her a bright smile. Well, that was something she hadn't expected. Most of the Slytherin students were rather cold and hostile towards Hermione, but this was probably the first time in six years of education that she and Daphne had shared a class. They'd never interacted before this moment, not on a one-to-one basis.

Taking a moment to look over the Slytherin before her, Hermione paused when she noticed a decorated box being clutched against her chest. Could it be that she was rather fond of Professor Babbling too, and was here to deliver some kind of gift to her? As if being able to read Hermione's thoughts, Daphne smiled shyly and started to explain.

"Things were tough at home last year, Professor Babbling helped me get through it. I wanted to thank her, even if it's with something as simple as chocolates and bath bombs." Daphne shrugged, not going into too much detail about her private life, but at the same time still giving Hermione a reasonable understanding behind the gift Daphne had gotten for the Professor. That's something else she admired about Professor Babbling, despite being busy grading papers or planning lessons, she always made time for her students.

Nodding softly, Hermione chose not to pry further and stood beside Daphne, leaning back against the wall as well. Minutes passed, but it appeared as if the Professor had either not heard Daphne's earlier knocks, and yes Hermione had asked if she'd knocked, or she simply wasn't in. Hermione was leaning to believe it was the latter. Her suspicions were confirmed when the older witch reached the top of the stairs and saw them waiting.

"Miss Granger, Miss Greengrass. You're early, the class doesn't start for another ten minutes." Professor Babbling pointed out, but regardless she opened the door to her classroom and invited them inside. Daphne was the first to enter, following the Professor to her desk where she eagerly handed over her gift. Hermione watched as the older witch raised a brow in curiosity but opened the present nonetheless, a soft smile spreading across her features as she examined the contents within the small box.

"Last year, when you told me you'd never used bath bombs before, well I knew that had to change, so I made you some of my favourite ones. That's strawberries and cream, then that one is honey and lemon, oh and that's chocolate and mint! They always help me relax after a long day. And after I made the chocolate one, I remember you telling me about your favourite kind of chocolate from your childhood. I asked my sister to help me make it, she's a bit better at that kind of thing, so I hope it's alright. I just wanted to say thank you for all your help last year. It really meant a lot to me." Daphne explained, her voice a little fast-paced, clearly nervous as to whether or not the Professor was going to like her gifts.

"Miss Greengrass, this is most gracious of you, thank you very much. I shall have to try these lovely gifts this evening when my classes are over." Professor Babbling smiled. Barely a second later, the rest of the students started filing into the classroom, taking their seats and waited for the lesson to begin.

Daphne didn't sit with her fellow Slytherin students as Hermione had expected her to. In fact, the blonde sat herself down right next to her, giving her a kind smile before unpacking her books and arranging them neatly on her desk. Before she had the chance to ask Daphne if there was a particular reason why she'd chosen to sit down beside her, Professor Babbling cleared her throat and stood up, addressing all the students within the room.

"Good morning class, and welcome to your first lesson on The Study of Ancient Runes. As the more observant of you will have deduced, I will be your Professor this year. I am Professor Babbling, and while I see some familiar faces among us, there are a few of you whom I haven't had the pleasure of meeting before. Don't be afraid to approach me outside of class if you need to, for either personal matters or what we discuss in class. Now, moving on, in today's lesson we will be covering..." Professor Babbling started, only to stop when the door slowly opened and Draco Malfoy's head peeked in cautiously.

All eyes in the class turned to him, wondering what on earth could make the usually prompt Slytherin late to his lesson. Hermione had a few ideas, most of them involving his unexplained visits to the Room of Requirement. Even Ginny wasn't sure what was going on up there, and she spent a fair amount of time searching its endless supply of forgotten items. As far as she could deduce, there wasn't anything among its treasures that would be of interest to Draco Malfoy. Then again, she didn't know him all that well.

"Sorry for my tardiness Professor. A first-year thought it would be amusing to set fire to my cloak." Malfoy muttered, his eyes cast on the floor at all times. Bullshit. Hermione could see right through his facade. No first-year would dare mess with a Malfoy, not unless they had a death wish. His reputation was known far and wide throughout the school. Even a young and excitable first year would not risk getting on his bad side for a bit of fun.

"Just don't make it a habit Mr Malfoy. Take your seat and get out your books." Professor Babbling instructed, turning her attention to the chalkboard where she began to write down the grading advisory for this particular subject. Malfoy meanwhile, entered the classroom and walked over to an empty desk near the back, unpacking his books in a slow and calculated manner. Like usual, he seemed to stare off into nowhere once more.

Looking back at the board, Hermione started taking down notes on how her papers and work would be graded so she could tailor her assignments towards those criteria. But she was stopped halfway through when Daphne gently nudged her, knocking Hermione's arm with her elbow gently. Putting down her quill, Hermione shot Daphne a curious look.

"Is it true Draco pushed you up against a tree at the Gryffindor try-outs?" She whispered. There was no judgemental look on her face, no smirk to indicate she was merely looking for gossip. No, if Hermione didn't know any better, she'd say it was an expression of concern. But not for Draco, for her. Nodding softly, Hermione turned her attention back to her book as she continued to write down everything the Professor put on the blackboard.

Daphne respected Hermione's silent wishes and didn't press the matter further, but Hermione couldn't help but notice the glare she sent Draco's way. That was definitely something she never thought she'd live to witness, someone besides her, Harry and Ron had it out for Draco Malfoy. He, of course, was completely oblivious to his housemates' ill will towards him and kept staring off into space.

"The term Ancient Runes is used to identify writing systems that are no longer commonly used. In olden times, these systems were used to write down magical texts and even used in spell work. Despite common belief, it can still be used for magical purposes to this day. The focus of today's lesson will be to master an Ancient Revealing Charm and try it out on a few samples I have prepared for the lesson. This particular charm will tell you the state of the runes you are studying, which can range anywhere from; magical, mundane, active, inactive or damaged." Professor Babbling explained, handing out some scrolls of parchment which contained the sample runes she'd prepared, one per two students.

Hermione and Daphne both leaned over the scroll, examining the contents of the parchment curiously. To say Hermione was pleasantly surprised by Daphne's academic curiosity was an understatement. She'd been led to believe by her fellow students the only thing the girl had an interest for was charms so she could learn various beautification spells. The young woman was not as stupid as everyone was making her out to be.

"To cast the Enchantment Revealing Charm, one must simply point their wand to the desired rune and say the following incantation: _Specialis Revelio_. When disposing of runes, I advise using this charm to ensure they are harmless before touching them. Now, when using the enchantment, one of four things will happen." Professor Babbling added, turning her attention back to the blackboard before writing down the results of casting the charm.

As she did, Hermione proceeded to write them down in her book. It would definitely be useful information to have when trying out the spell on her own, in her own time. Instead of being confused, she would know exactly what each reaction meant, as she could simply refer to the information she was writing down now. It seemed Daphne had the same idea.

_No Result/Glow: rune has been drained of all magic (a result of intentional draining or magical/physical damage). Could be an indicator the enchantment never worked, to begin with._

_Amber/Bronze Glow: a sign of successfully activating the runes. _

_Red Glow: runes are activated, but there is something wrong with the set. Could be magically compromised, or severe issues with its activation. DO NOT USE. Consult expert immediately. _

_Pale Blue Glow: means there is an enchantment and/or spell on the runes. Consult with an expert to determine what this could be. Proceed cautiously, if at all. _

"Now, none of these sets will have a red glow, as I cast them all myself. Any with a pale blue glow will have very simple, harmless enchantments on them so you needn't worry about consulting anyone. This is merely what you should do when discovering runes on your own, outside the safety of the classroom. Now, in your pairs, please take turns casting the enchantment on the sets and record your findings." Professor Babbling instructed.

Turning to Daphne, offering her first try, Hermione watched as the young witch cast the enchantment on the first set of runes, grinning in delight as they glowed a soft amber. Hermione tried the set below afterwards, earning the same result. As they progressed through the parchment, Daphne and Hermione seemed to breeze through their lesson's objective while the rest of their classmates were having a hard time, even Malfoy. Then again, he didn't look like he was putting all that much effort in, to begin with.

"Hermione, I was wondering, would you like to be partners for this subject? I'd much rather sit with you compared to some of the people in this class, and it would be nice to sit with someone who actually wants to discuss the work we're meant to be doing, compared to the alternatives of Quidditch or the latest school gossip." Daphne inquired.

Pausing for a moment, Hermione considered the offer. Daphne definitely seemed different to her fellow Slytherin students, someone who she could actually get along with even. Plus it would be nice to spend some time with someone outside the Gryffindor friends she had. It would be nice to have a break from Harry's continuous slandering of Draco Malfoy. Sure, it may spark off some arguments later on down the line, but Hermione was perfectly capable of choosing who she wanted to spend time with, and who her friends were.

"I think that sounds like a fantastic idea. Would you want to study together after class and work on our homework together?" Hermione added.

"Of course! I've been needing some time away from Pansy, all she does is talk about Draco. I'm at my wit's end. I'll have to consult with my schedule and see when we've both got free periods, maybe we can meet up during those? Make it a weekly thing? Here, give me your hand." Daphne instructed, gently talking Hermione's hand before writing something on it softly. After a few moments, the ink faded and Daphne did the same on her own hand.

Nodding softly to herself, Daphne then proceeded to write on her hand again, but Hermione watched in amazement as the exact sentence Daphne scribbled down appeared on Hermione's palm, the handwriting mirrored exactly.

"Communication spell. No one can see it besides us, and it doesn't disappear until you look at it and then glide over the writing with your thumb, so there's no chance of accidentally missing it. I'll let you know what times I'm free during the week later on, and we can go from there." Daphne stated with another soft smile.

"That's brilliant! You'll have to teach me that spell at some point." Hermione giggled. Both in agreement, the girls turned their attention back to the parchment where the last set of runes remained. From the order they were going off, taking it in turns, this one was Daphne's to reveal. Casting the enchantment, Hermione's eyes went wide in shock when the runes started glowing red. A mere second later, and sparks resembling the form of lightning started coming off the paper, catching the attention of all eyes in the room.

"Professor! Something's wrong!" Daphne exclaimed, not noticing a large burst of the red energy snap off the runes and head directly for her. Not wasting a moment, Hermione pushed the blonde out of the way, getting hit square in the chest and sent flying back against the wall with a loud thud before dropping to the floor like a sack of bricks. Her vision went blurry in a matter of seconds and she was struggling to remain conscious. Daphne was by her side in an instant, her muffled voice calling for help. But before she slipped into the darkness, Hermione's eyes locked with Draco's. Were those...tears?


End file.
